Black Lives Matter Today, Tomorrow and Every Day After That — Existing While Black
Look in the mirror, Britain. This is not just an ‘American problem’.
To exist as a black person is to be aware that the majority of your non-black counterparts do not acknowledge your history and your continual suffering at the hands of the plight of racism. A white person’s existence allows them to enjoy privilege, means that they haven’t had to adopt centuries of trauma, have not been subjected to racial stereotypes, a media that imparts negativity surrounding people of their race, nor have they originated from countries plagued by the destruction and ruin left in the wake of imperialism and colonisation. They do not need to navigate their everyday lives aware of how others perceive them without knowing anything about their personality or their lives, but merely the colour of their skin. They do not need to come to terms with the reality that the colour of their skin means that they have to work twice as hard to get half as far. Existing while black is being conscious of how I can make myself palatable for my white colleagues. Existing while black is expecting non-black people to refer to your hair in its natural state as ‘untamed’ or ‘not very corporate’. Existing while black is witnessing shock in response to my good upbringing, my level of education and my level of intelligence. Existing while black is always hearing ‘wow you’re so articulate’ and ‘you don’t sound black’. Existing while black is constantly seeing your people murdered by the very institutions that are supposed to maintain law and order by protecting the public. So much of our mental space is occupied with securing our bodies and keeping us safe from violence, occupied with the fear of bringing black children into a world plagued with racism and inequality. “To be black is equal parts pride, fury, hope and utter heartbreak these days.” Yet, our experiences are often dismissed as ‘pandering to wokeness’ and to call out racism is to ‘pull the race card’.
Privilege is the ability to shield oneself from the realities of black lives, black suffering and black pain. The exploration of whiteness, white supremacy, systemic and institutional racism is central to the dismantling of epochs of the lynching, suffering and oppression of black people.
Racism and its manifestations respire in the very fabric of the societal views that cloud dominant discourse. Racism is systemic, built into every level of our society. Major institutions are pervaded by racial discourses, stereotypes, ideas and practices and racism is still so deeply entrenched a half century after the abolition of slavery.
Inequality and racism is an American problem.
The issue of inequality and racism spans across nations. The oppression of black people is borderless. Transatlantic slavery was predicated on racialised violence that targeted black people and profited from the erasure of black people’s sense of place, community and belonging. The legacies of slavery and Jim Crow in the US are still NOT remnants of a racist past, but instead continue to pervade the everyday lives of black people WORLDWIDE. The walls of disadvantage that today block the paths of young black Britons are a mutated product of the same racism.
Many will refer to the case of racism in the United States as racism in its most intense form but dismiss one’s mention of racism here, in Britain. In fact, similar racial nuances are all too prevalent within Britain; the exertion of excessive force by the police upon black people on our streets, the abuse of stop and search powers, the Windrush Scandal, Grenfell, the umteen examples of racism in football, among several other recent examples. From Operation Trident to the Gang’s Matrix, the MET Police continuously enact state sanctioned sadistic, callous and cruel treatment of our people.
Whilst the country exults in black Britons’ success in culture, fashion and sport, discrimination still blights their lives. A nation that supposedly vocalises their ‘love of black music and black culture’ was outraged and disgusted when rapper Stromzy announced that he would fund the tuition fees and the cost of living for four black Cambridge University students. Many branded the Stormzy Scholarship, which aims to encourage the admission of more black students into the top universities as ‘racist’ and ‘anti-white’, despite the fact that the percentage of ethnic minority students at Cambridge stands at a mere 26.8%. Make of that what you will.
Racist sentiment is also transparent in the ludicrous reaction of the nation towards Dave’s performance at this year’s Brit Awards, brandishing his performance of a reworked version of his song ‘Black’, racist. The irony here is that he highlights a series of racist political issues in the UK, from Grenfell to the media’s treatment of Meghan Markle (clear examples of racism towards ethnic minorities) and labels the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson as ‘the real racist’ (which is also fact). The performance also resulted in 309 Ofcom complaints. The very fact that his lyrics are so contentious speaks volumes of where Britain is as a country. Boris Johnson does have a long record of racist remarks made towards ethnic minorities. From “It is said that the Queen has come to love the Commonwealth, partly because it supplies her with regular cheering crowds of flag-waving piccaninnies,” and referring to African people as having “watermelon smiles” to comparing Muslim women to “letter boxes”. Which of Dave’s lyrics were a lie?
The mass media has an indisputable role in the production and dissemination of common cultural references, as well as an incredible role in influencing the attitudes of the nation’s people. The depictions and presentations of black people in the media in particular shows how the UK media has used its influence to promote and spearhead racist discourses consistently. The twisting of one’s comments to fit a negative narrative resulting in the eruption of abuse and a vicious onslaught from white people, isn’t foreign to the lives of black Brits. Stormzy again, fell victim to a string of abuse when remarks he had made in an interview were misquoted. When asked whether he believed that Britain was still racist, he replied “Yes, 100%”, yet a number of platforms, including the Daily Mail, Sky News and ITV fuelled the condemnation of the star, claiming that he had stated that “the UK is 100% racist.” Many platforms pushed the narrative that he was ‘lucky’ to have grown up here and ‘should be grateful’. Amanda Platel of the Daily Mail’s ignorance and racism shone through in her article, in which she candidly states that he should show “a scintilla of gratitude to the country that offered his mother and him so much, instead of trashing it.” Typical racist stuff really.
Anti-blackness in Britain is prevalent and mustn’t be reduced to ‘implicit racism’ or ‘covert racism’, for these labels diminish the years of trauma faced by black people in Britain in their everyday lives. To survive in Britain, is to navigate how you act in non-black environments and to have a corporate version of yourself. To survive in Britain is to think twice about wearing a hoodie or jogging bottoms, because you are aware of how you may be perceived. The ‘it’s not our problem’ discourse is used to shut down the discussion of this prevalent issue. Britain, like the US, has a lengthy history of colonisation and systemic racism. The very acquisition of the ‘Great’ before ‘Great Britain’ was due to the Empire’s colonial history, the stolen land and resources from our home countries.
Why police brutality against the Black community is such an issue in the Western World
The perpetual issue of police brutality is just one of the many agents of racial prejudice that pervades at an institutional level and this is spearheaded consistently in the statistics. US police arrest and kill black men at ‘far higher rates than any other group.’ Numbers do not lie. 1,022 black people have been shot and killed by US police in the past year according to the Washington Post database on Fatal Force, excluding those who have died in police custody or were killed by other methods. 99% of killings by police from 2013–2019 have not resulted in officer’s being charged with a crime. Black males between the ages of 15 and 34 are nine times more likely to be killed by police than any other demographic.
The existence and allowance of Police Brutality to permeate in society is a causal result of centuries of racism and classism and the consequent messages and widely held views that cloud dominant discourse; the depiction of black people in the media as inferior, the synonymy between blackness and criminality, down to the stereotypical depictions of black people as ‘token’ in television. Social stratification is vital in educating oneself of the disadvantages experienced by the minoritized group as the theory serves to justify the unequal positions of black people in society because black people are seen as less valuable. The ‘blue wall of silence’ also referred to as the ‘blue code’ or ‘blue shield’ also permeates police culture. These terms denote the informal or unofficial oath of silence among police officers to avoid reporting a colleague’s crimes, errors or misconduct.
I make reference to what we know of the system of slavery, which allowed colonisers to adopt a power dynamic that rested on ensuring that black people were without agency and powerless. The plantations were a place where the slaves’ existence rested upon their master’s acknowledgement of them as subhuman. On the plantation, black identity became confined in the trap of a commodified body. Currently, the police also encompasses a hierarchal position and enforces a power dynamic that also seemingly rests on ensuring that black people are powerless. In 2020, white people are still dominant, black people are still oppressed, still fear for their lives and are still powerless at the hands of the police.
What now? — Solidarity and the eradication of white complacency
In fighting this societal paradox, I call for a united front in challenging these very ideological views and I call for members within society, members of both the marginalized groups and the dominant group, through solidarity. This is not a struggle that only we, black people, can fight alone. However, the ability to successfully fight a cause first begins with the acknowledgment that the issue exists. The very complacency amongst non-black people, firstly of the fact that racism exists, but second, turning a blind eye to it, is the very reason why racism continuously pervades our lives.
White people must educate themselves on this history of racism and of the suffering of black people. Learn about the intersection of race, justice and mass incarceration in the US and the disproportionate incarceration of black people. Learn about the Black Panthers. Learn about the Destruction of Black Wall Street. Learn about the British Empire and the invasion, colonisation and expropriation of foreign lands for its expansion. Learn about the two week long Notting Hill Race Riots and the attacking and rioting of the homes of West Indians. Learn about racism in UK politics: “If you want a nigger for a neighbour, vote Labour.” Learn about the numerous black people who are killed by the police in the UK. Learn about the deaths of Stephen Lawrence, Sarah Reed and Mark Duggan. They must be aware of their privilege and underscore this as unfair, unethical and wrong. Attitudes must be changed. Prejudice views are not innate within a person but is something learnt. If something can be taught and learnt, it can be unlearnt. There is a dire need to convince all within society, that this is an issue of racism and injustice, and that all deserve equal rights. Solidarity, support and the movement must continue long after a hashtag.
My fellow black people, we must continue to come together and be united. We must support black owned businesses and pour our money into our own communities. We must hold people accountable when we experience racism or feel mistreated. We need more black people in positions of power. Infiltrate the system! We must also be aware that the media is in the business of maintaining the status quo, reducing transformation and shifting human consciousness into a war against each other. Be aware of what you consume.
We are tired of being killed needlessly and without consequence. We are not starting a race war, but trying to END one.
For more written work: ChevBadiOnPolitics.com
